by David Wilcox & Jessica Sapalio, WUU Social Justice Chairs
Our WUU mission calls us to serve our members and friends, Greater Williamsburg, liberal religion, and the global community and to work toward justice for all. One of the ways we live that commitment is through our social justice ministry. As SJ Co-Chairs, we support the WUU SJ leaders who actively coordinate that ministry. Here is a list of the current WUU social justice programs.
Share the Plate – Twice a month, WUU directs the entire Sunday service offering to support non-profit, generally local, human service organizations that provide much-needed services to our community. Would you like to meet some of the people working with the best service organizations in Williamsburg and help select the recipients? Consider joining the Share the Plate team. Our current chairperson, Nan Hart, is stepping down as chair after serving for more than four years. Contact STP@wuu.org for more information.
Motel Meals – WUU participates in the Motel Meals Program, which is organized by John Moravetz for From His Hands and Greater Williamsburg Outreach Mission. Meals are prepared at WISC by Meals On Wheels for $11.00, which feeds a family of 4. On the second Wednesday of every month, the WUU team delivers hot dinners to families and seniors living in America’s Inn, Travelodge on Bypass Rd, and Col Waller motels. The motel meals team: John and Karla Mitovich, Fred Gilbertson, Martha Elim, Henry Bellows, Kerry Mellette, David and Linda Lane Hamilton, Helen Hansen, Jackson Verburg, Savanah Williams, and Trenna Tankersley take turns picking up meals and delivering them to the recipients who are nominated by motel managers. Email sjchair@wuu.org to get involved.
Summer Meals for Kids – WUU partners with St. Martin’s to make and pack lunches for 220 children living in low-income housing areas and motels every Friday during the summer. Volunteers will be recruited spring 2024. Email sjchair@wuu.org to get involved.
Winter Shelter – This season, WUU will be hosting the cold night shelter in our building, just as we did before 2020. Our scheduled week is March 3-10. This is an opportunity to live our values by providing warm meals and a safe place to sleep. Sign-ups for meal preparation, check in and out, and safety shifts will shared soon. Kate McGaw and Helen Hansen will be this year’s co-leaders. Contact sjchair@wuu.org to get involved.
Journey to Asylum – As part of the UU Service Committee’s Congregational Accompaniment Program for Asylum-Seekers, we are proud to walk shoulder to shoulder with migrants throughout the entire asylum process – from the time we transport them to Williamsburg until they are legally granted asylum and achieve self-sufficiency. We are currently hosting a family of 7 from the DRC. Interested in helping with this important mission? Contact Mary McGovern Asylum@wuu.org.
Welcoming Congregation – The Welcoming Congregation Team is dedicated to welcoming lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning people, their families, and friends to our congregation; and concentrating on issues that affect the LGBTQ+ community. WUU is proud to have completed the Welcoming Congregation Renewal process in 2023 and the Team is committed to continued annual renewal. Contact WelcomingCongregation@wuu.org for more information.
Criminal Legal System Reform – WUU works to address equity issues in several facets of the local criminal justice system and to end mass incarceration. The Court Watch program gives us eyes inside the system and collects qualitative and quantitative data to tell the story of what actually goes on after someone is arrested. We are in need of volunteers (small monthly time commitment). We are also invovled with legislative advocacy at the state level. If you are interested in helping with this work or any of our other legal system reform efforts, contact SJChair@wuu.org.
UU the Vote – UU the Vote is a non-partisan initiative of the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) that works nationally to protect voting rights, educate voters, and encourage people to participate in the democratic process. WUU participates in UU the Vote primarily through postcard drives that provide accurate information and empowering messages to voters of color in states with a history of voter suppression. Contact Jodi Fisler UUtheVote@wuu.org.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us at SJChair@wuu.org. We are eager to hear what you are passionate about and how you would like to help make a difference.
“The central task of the religious community is to unveil the bonds that bind each to all. There is a connectedness, a relationship discovered amid the particulars of our own lives and the lives of others. Once felt, it inspires us to act for Justice.
It is the church that assures us that we are not struggling for justice on our own, but as members of a larger community. The religious community is essential, for alone our vision is too narrow to see all that must be seen, and our strength too limited to do all that must be done. Together, our vision widens and our strength is renewed.”
– Rev. Mark D. Morrison Reed